There’s a bumper sticker that was circulating a few years ago which read, “He who dies with the most toys wins”. Now contrary to that belief, that statement should read, “He who dies with the most toys..still dies. Because no matter how many “toys” you accumulate here on earth, they will never guarantee you another day here on earth than what God has ordained you to have.

Many a man has sacrificed his role as Father, leader, mentor, priest..yes priest my friend, to their children due to their desire to gain success, titles, societal acceptance, and simply their own selfish desires here on earth.

Let’s take a trip back to the day when God first created man in His image and placed him in the Garden of Eden with a job to do and also giving him dominion over all.

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” – Genesis 1:26-28

Men, you were created to rule…to have dominion, to conquer your world and be the man according to God’s divine order that you were destined and created to be. But something happened in Chapter 3 of Genesis that tilted God’s order of things when man chose to disobey God and listen to the enemy of his soul, satan. Adam chose to listen to Eve instead of “manning up” and taking his role as “man of the house” and obeying God’s commandment of not eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And as a result, God held Adam responsible as we see in Chapter 3:17. Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life.

Furthermore, have you ever noticed that Eve was not alone during her conversation with the ser­pent. Genesis 3:6 describes “her husband with her.” The whole time the serpent was talking, Adam was there. Silent. And by his silence, Adam relinquished his God-given right to leadership. The silence of Adam is still a problem among men to this day. But Adam—and you and I—are still accountable. While Eve bore responsibility for her part, Adam was held responsible because of his leader­ship position that God had given him.

Men, you are responsible for that which falls within your realm of influence: your family, ministry, career, re­sources, community, or other areas of personal influence. But far too often, fathers have relinquished these roles to either their wives, the television, social media, following the latest trend, and end up giving up their role as God called men and “Outsourcing their Fatherhood” to someone or something else.

Men, let’s take back our roles as true Men of God and mirror to our wives, our children, our co-workers, our society and our world what a Man of God really looks like.